Cooking, besides being a source
of inspiration can also be a good way to support good causes, among them to support local farmers
and local foods.
Unlike large supermarket chains, local producers have
a serious concern with the environment and the quality of their products and that is why when
we consume vegetables, fruits, milk, meat and etcetera locally produced, we can feel a huge
difference in taste, texture and quality, and of course competitive prices.
In addition to supporting local farmers, visiting
farms can also be an excellent opportunity for you and your children to get in touch with
nature, breathe some fresh air and see the animals in their natural environment. Try a fruit
picked by you and even knowing how the process of growing and harvesting local foods are
performed.
Recently I was
at Real Food Festival and was surprised to see how people appreciate local food. Organic, free
range, quality and flavour of products ranging from bread, meat, wine, champagne, fruits, sweets,
beer, cider, cheese, coffee, vegetables and much more.
If there are many good reasons to start consuming
local foods, why not start today, visit your local farmers and you'll feel the difference in
the quality that you consume and enjoy.
Check this:21
Reasons to be excited about local foods.
1 - Support your local economy and
community. Money you spend on foods grown and produced locally
helps local farms to stay in, and grow their businesses. As they grow, they need to employ
more local people, and the local suppliers they buy from also grow and employ people. They
all need more local skills & services, which helps to build a thriving local
community.
2 - Support local
farmers. If you want to be sure that you are
supporting farmers you need to buy locally direct from them at farm shops, farmers' markets,
Pick-Your-Own and box schemes. No middle-men means that farmers get more of what you pay for
the foods, which is fair when they are putting in so much
skill.
3 - You can try something
new. Farmers
enjoy food, and they enjoying being creative with their produce to bring you new
flavours.
4 - Try
Pick-Your-Own. for an exciting way to get your
food. Anyone can buy strawberries from the supermarket - be different, go to a Pick-Your-Own
farm and buy only the best in the field when it's ripe and ready to eat.
5 - Reduce food miles ... and help the
environment. Food miles are clocked up when food
travels. You don't want to collect these as they add up to an enormous amount of greenhouse gas
emissions, even when food is distributed around the UK, which is bad for the environment. Research
shows that when you choose to buy locally produced foods from a farm shop or farmers' market you
can reduce the amount of carbon dioxide emissions associated with distribution by over 90%.
6 - Reduce
packaging. Food packaging, much of it used
to keep food safe during transport, accounts for a very high proportion of waste in both
costs and materials. Buy direct from the farm and from farmers' markets and you buy less
paper, cardboard and plastic which helps to protect the environment. While a fair amount of
packaging can be recycled, a lot still ends up in landfill.
Best not to use it in the first place.
7 - Reduce waste - not just yours but the
farmer's too. Some of the of food grown for
supermarkets is rejected on delivery to their distribution depots because it's the 'wrong'
size, shape or colour. It's perfectly good food! Farmers selling local foods offer nothing
but the best and will include large and small and irregular shapes because that's how nature
does things. Enjoy the difference!
8 - Meet some very nice
people. When you buy locally from farms and
farmers' markets you'll meet some very nice people, like these for example. Meet Alan, Victoria and
Simon Holland with baby Grace, from Washingpool Farm, Bridport, Dorset, just one of the farming
families who work together to bring you lovely, local food.
9 - Keep the countryside looking
beautiful.
The British landscape has been created by the farming that suits it
best. Keep it looking lovely by buying what it produces direct from the farm whenever you can.
Farmers love their landscape too, and it has to provide a living for them.
10 - Local foods make travelling
interesting.
When you go abroad, do you try to eat the local foods and doesn't
that help to make a holiday memorable? It's the same in this country except that foods with local
character had tended to disappear from view as supermarkets tightened their supply lines for easier
management.
The
good news is that you can now buy locally produced foods almost everywhere in the UK from farm
shops, farmers' markets and, of course, Pick-Your-Own farms. Local tourist information centres
should have details; or you can visit www.farma.org.ukfor
information about places to buy direct; or send two first class stamps to the address on the end
of this page for a copy of our lovely leaflet.
11 - You get the freshest and best
foods.
Pop some fresh peas from the pod and eat them ...
or try sweetcorn when it's freshly picked from the PYO, farm shop or farmers' market. You can even
eat it raw, it's so sweet and tender; from the moment sweetcorn is picked, the sugar in the kernels
begins to turn to starch and the older it is, the more starchy it gets. So freshest is best for
flavour.
12 - Buying direct from the farm is an
education.
Whether you buy at the farmers' market or from the farm you can talk
to the farmer to ask about how the food was grown or reared ask any question you like and they'll
be delighted to answer. You can visit the farm, either as routine because it's where the shop is
located, or for special events and open days.
And don't forget Pick-Your-Own. Children are very
welcome and it's exciting to see food as it grows, to harvest it and taste it when it's
really, really fresh.
13 - Buying local foods direct gives you lots of choice
and varieties to try.
Farmers and local producers selling direct at
farmers' markets, through farm shops and PYO like to offer you something different. Where can you
buy bison or ostrich meat? Direct from the farm. Where can you find cheeses made from the milk of
buffalo herds in the UK? Direct from the farm - and it's a fact that we now have more varieties of
cow, sheep, goat and buffalo cheeses, made by small producers, than the French.
You'll find meats from rare breeds which offer
excellent flavour and texture. (They are called rare breeds because they are not used for
mainstream commercial production and, although it seems strange, the only way to keep rare
breeds alive is to continue to farm them to produce meat.)
You'll also find different fruit and vegetable
varieties. Strawberries are a good example. On Pick-Your-Own farms you might find Kimberley,
Florence, Sophie, Elan, Flamenco, Honeoye, Hapil (a great big juicy berry), Korona, Elvira,
Eros and Totem (a strawberry that will freeze fairly well). Each of these has a distinct
flavour, texture, shape, colour and time of ripe perfection. By visiting the PYO farm often,
you'll get this much choice.
Look out also for apples - there are hundreds of
British varieties, not just one or two. You'll find more of them to buy when you visit the
farm or farmers' market. Plus cherries (in July) and plums in August and September ...
14 - We have seasons for produce.
It's easy to forget that, while the British
climate produces some of the most fabulous tasting fruit and vegetables, we cannot grow them all
year round. Buying direct from the farm and farmers' market puts you in touch with the seasons when
the produce is the best you can get. See the chart alongside as a guide for when produce is ready
(this may vary around the UK and with different weather conditions).
15 - Food direct from the producer is fully
traceable.
What more can we say? The farmer produces it and sells it either from
his (or her) own farm shop, through a box scheme or from the farmers' market stall. And he (or she)
can tell you all about it. The parentage of the livestock, the breed and why they choose to rear
it; the crops and varieties and why they produce them - which may be because of soil conditions,
micro-climate or because they simply like.
16 - The best ingredients and great value for
money.
Top chefs know that great meals start with the best quality
ingredients. That's why so many are fans of farmers' markets, farm shops and even pick-your-own if
they have time. Buying seasonal foods means great value for money - and farmers will offer extra
savings when there's a glut of any crop.
17 - Food sold direct from local farms is made with
love and care.
Selling direct gives farmers contact with you, their customers, so
they know immediately when they've produced something delicious. Your comments help to guide
production.
18 - Better for your health.
Research shows that beef from grass-fed cattle contains more
beneficial fatty acids than that from intensively-reared animals who never graze but are fed on
concentrates. Plus really fresh, fresh produce is likely to contain more vitamains - and there are
rarely 'buy-one-get-one-free' or 'go-large' options which means less waste (and possibly less waist
too?).
19 - Support your local farmers'
markets.
Buying from your local farmers' markets, even if they are very small,
helps farmers and small food producers to thrive. With your continued support and enthusiasm,
farmers' markets can grow to become bigger, even more exciting markets.
20 - Support Certified farmers'
markets.
The FARMA Certification symbol will
help you to recognise farmers' markets that are operating according to gUidelines which
protect you and genuine stall holders from being cheated. We think that this is important
because local farmers put in lots of hours of hard work to bring you produce that they have
reared or grown themselves. Other local producers at the market may offer foods they have
brewed, baked, pickled or caught and they must all be present in person to sell. Anything less
than this is not a real farmers' market.
21 - Discovering local food is
exciting.
You will probably never lose the sense of excitement you feel when
you discover your first really good farm shop, PYO or farmers' market. Local foods are interesting,
they are carefully made by people who love food. And their enthusiasm passes to you, which is
exciting for everyone.
For more info:
NATIONAL FARMERS' RETAIL & MARKETS ASSOCIATION (FARMA)
PO Box 575, Southampton
S015 7BZ www.farma.org.uk
FARMA exists to support farmers and local producers selling direct with the aim of increasing their
professionalism and improving their prospects for the future.
Try Local Foods
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